As prices of digital SLRs fall with more people moving up from smaller and cheaper compact cameras, so the average resolution of such cameras increases.

Offering double the pixel count of Canon’s early entry level models, the latest 12-megapixel resolution EOS 450D is no exception to that trend.

Gripped in the palm it feels solid yet lightweight, and it is fast to power up with a wait of just a second before a shot can be fired off.

It includes some enticing features for your money: the 3.5 frames-per-second continuous capture betters all but the camera's professional rivals and is useful for sports and action photography, for instance.

Impressive too is a large 3in rear screen that, courtesy of a Live View feature, can be used to both capture and review your shots – increasingly a must-have on DSLRs which traditionally have only used screens for reviewing shots.

Another user-friendly touch is that if you want to use the optical viewfinder above the screen to compose photographs, the monitor will sense this and automatically switch off to save power and avoid disturbing you.

The autofocus system uses readings from nine points spread across the frame to keep your subject sharp whereever they are. It's fewer points than more expensive cameras but it allows for a certain amount of creative flexibility.

It’s worth noting also that buying into Canon’s system, as opposed to those from, say, Sony or Olympus, means you have access to a larger number of lenses – up to 67 at the time of writing.

We were pleased with the natural colours the 450D delivered, and the ability to automatically clean its sensor free of any dust or hairs is a boon for anyone planning on often changing lenses.

It may sound complex, but operation of the 450D is in fact easy enough to allow a novice to take better pictures from day one. However, we’d advise starting with the image-stabilised 18-55mm zoom lens kit option – look for ‘IS’ in the lens name – as this will help avoid the occasional soft image resulting from hand wobble.